Constantine Wrote Matthew 28:19 Into Your
Bible!
What Did Matthew Actually Write, "Baptizing them in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," OR "Go ye, and make
disciples of all the nations IN MY NAME"?
This article is based on a publication which was originally written in
1961 and titled “A Collection of the Evidence For and Against the
Traditional Wording of the Baptismal Phrase in Matthew 28:19”. The author
was a minister, presumably Protestant. He signed his work simply as A.
Ploughman. He lived in Birmingham, England. The author had not encountered
anything dealing with the authenticity of Matthew 28:19, during his 50 years
of Biblical study except from out of print articles, books and
encyclopedias. I would have never considered reviewing this information
except for the fact that a trusted friend was quite zealous about the
importance of the conclusions reached. In this article, only the secular
historical quotations have been retained as written from Ploughman’s
research.
Questioning the authenticity of Matthew 28:19 is not a matter of
determining how easily it can or cannot be explained within the context of
established doctrinal views. Rather, it is a matter of discovering the very
thoughts of our God, remembering that His truth, and not our traditions, is
eternal.
The information presented is extremely relevant to our faith. The amount
of information supporting the conclusions presented may seem overwhelming,
but for the serious seeker of truth, the search is well worth effort. I hope
that you will allow the facts contained in this article to stir you into
action. If you discover that you have not been baptized into the name of the
true God, and have knowingly accepted a substitute, how would God respond?
However, it must be remembered that we have no known manuscripts that
were written in the first, second or even the third centuries. There is a
gap of over three hundred years between when Matthew wrote his epistle and
our earliest manuscript copies. (It also took over three hundred years for
the Catholic Church to evolve into what the “early church fathers” wanted it
to become.)
No single early manuscript is free from textual error. Some have unique
errors; other manuscripts were copied extensively and have the same errors.
Again, our aim is to examine all of the evidence and determine as closely as
possible what the original words were.
Considering the fact that all of the scriptures from Genesis thru Malachi
make no reference to a Trinitarian God, and that from Mark thru Revelation
we also find no evidence for a Trinity, we must consider the possibility
that all the existing manuscripts may have one or more textual errors in
common.
According to the Biblical historian Dr. C. R. Gregory:
The Greek manuscripts of the text of the New Testament were often altered
by the scribes, who put into them the readings which were familiar to them,
and which they held to be the right readings.
More on these changes will be addressed later. Another writer said:
A great step forward is taken when we propose to give manuscripts weight,
not according to their age, but according to the age of the text which they
contain. By proving how honest a text is rather than strictly how old it is
provides us with a text which has content that is truly ancient. When we
verify that a text is older than the fourth century, that it was current in
the third or better still the second century, we still cannot be sure that
it has not been altered. We need to try to verify that the text is pure
text. There is reason to believe that the very grossest errors that have
ever deformed the text had entered it already in the second century. What we
wish to ascertain, however, is not merely an ancient text but an accurate
text.
Of course, “the grossest errors,” that this writer is referring to are
not doctrinal errors, but the errors in the text itself. Not surprisingly
tho, some of these textual corruptions occurred simultaneously with the
respective doctrinal changes as they were being introduced in the early
church. This historic falling away will be addressed later.
Just as with the manuscripts, all extant Versions, containing the end of
Matthew, also contain the Triune name. But, of course, there is more to be
considered than what is present in a document. One must also take into
consideration what is absent. Again quoting from the Encyclopedia of
Religion and Ethics: “In all extant versions the text is found in the
traditional [Trinitarian] form ...though it must be remembered that the best
manuscripts, both of the African Old Latin and of the Old Syriac Versions
are defective at this point.”
F.C. Conybeare further elaborated:
In the only codices which would be even likely to preserve an older
reading, namely the Sinaitic Syriac and the oldest Latin Manuscript, the
pages are gone which contained the end of Matthew.
So then, though all early Versions contain the traditional Triune name in
Matthew 28:19, the earliest of these Versions do not contain the verse at
all. And curiously, not due to omission, but due to removal! We can not be
certain of the motives why these pages were destroyed, but for the sake of
our study we are now compelled to consult the early historical writings
Excerpts of Early Catholic Writers
Before we make references concerning these early writers, it should be
emphatically stated, that if the question under consideration were one of
doctrine, the written records of these Catholic writers would be totally
irrelevant. Doctrine must be obtained from the pure Word of God alone, and
not from Catholics, Jews or other sources. These self proclaimed “fathers”
lived in an age of unrestrained heresy. Their testimony is valuable only
because they provide an incidental and independent verification of
scriptural texts much older than our current complete copies.
In the course of my reading I have been able to substantiate these doubts
of the authenticity of the text of Matthew 28:19 by adducing patristic [L.
pater: "father"] evidence against it, so weighty that in the future the most
conservative of divines will shrink from resting on it any dogmatic fabric
at all, while the more enlightened will discard it as completely as they
have its fellow-text of the ‘Three Witnesses’. - F.C. Conybeare in the
Hibbert Journal
Could this bold statement be true? While not a single manuscript from the
first three centuries remains in existence, we do have “eye witness”
observations of at least two men who actually had access to manuscripts
dating much earlier than our earliest. Others also quoted Matthew 28:19,
whose written works have been preserved, dating to much earlier times than
our best manuscript copies. We are about to examine who these men were and
what the circumstances were. We will attempt to determine if these are
reliable quotations of the original scriptures. How did they quote Matthew
28:19? Did their comments imply an existing controversy surrounding the use
of the scriptures being quoted? Was a Trinity implied? These are questions
that can be answered.
In the pages ahead, we will consider evidence from the following men,
either via quotations from their writings, or as commented upon thru the
writings of their contemporaries: 1) Eusebius of Caesurae, 2) The unknown
author of De Rebaptismate, 3) Origen, 4) Clement of Alexandria, 5) Justin
Martyr, 6) Macedonius, 7) Eunomius and 8) Aphraates.
Our search through their writings is not to establish any doctrine, but
to find early witnesses to the verse in question.
Eusebius of Caesurae
Our first witness will be Eusebius of Caesurae, also known as Eusebius
Pamphili. He was born around 270 A.D., and died around 340 A.D. He lived in
times of rampant doctrinal change, was a Trinitarian, and in later life
assisted in the formation of the Nicene Creed. Regarding our inquiry into
Matthew 28:19, Eusebius is our key witness. Therefore, to establish his
veracity as a credible witness, let us consider the following quotes:
“Eusebius of Caesurae, to whom we are indebted for the preservation of so
many contemporary works of antiquity, many of which would have perished had
he not collected and edited them.” Robert Roberts, in Good Company, vol.
III, pg. 10
Eusebius, the greatest Greek teacher of the Church and most learned
theologian of his time...worked untiringly for the acceptance of the pure
Word of the New Testament as it came from the Apostles...Eusebius...relies
throughout only upon ancient manuscripts, and always openly confesses the
truth when he cannot find sufficient testimony. E.K. in the Christadelphian
Monatshefte, Aug, 1923 from Mosheim, in an editorial footnote.
Eusebius Pamphili, Bishop of Caesurae in Palestine, a man of vast reading
and erudition, and one who has acquired immortal fame by his labors in
ecclesiastical history, and in other branches of theological learning.
Chapter 2, 9...Till about 40 years of age he lived in great intimacy with
the martyr Pamphilus, a learned and devout man of Caesurae, and founder of
an extensive library there, from which Eusebius derived his vast store of
learning. Dr. Wescott, in “General Survey,” page 108
Eusebius, to whose zeal we owe most of what is known of the history of
the New Testament. Peake Bible Commentary, page 596
The most important writer in the first quarter of the fourth century was
Eusebius of Caesurae...Eusebius was a man of little originality or
independent judgment. But he was widely read in the Greek Christian
literature of the second and third centuries, the bulk of which has now
irretrievably perished, and subsequent ages owe a deep debt to his honest,
if some-what confused, and at times not a little prejudiced, erudition.
Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature
Some hundred works, several of them very lengthy, are either directly
cited or referred to as having been read by Eusebius. In many instances he
would read an entire treatise for the sake of one or two historical notices,
and must have searched many others without finding anything to serve his
purpose. Under the head the most vital question is the sincerity of
Eusebius. Did he tamper with the materials or not? The sarcasm of Gibbon
(Decline and Fall, c. xvi) is well known...The passages to which Gibbon
refers do not bear out his imputation...Eusebius contents himself with
condemning these sins...in general terms, without entering into
details...but it leaves no imputation on his honesty. Mosheim, again in an
editorial note.
Eusebius was an impartial historian, and had access to the best helps for
composing a correct history which his age afforded. Mosheim
Of the patristic witnesses to the text of the New Testament as it stood
in the Greek Manuscripts from about 300-340 A.D., none is so important as
Eusebius of Caesurae, for he lived in the greatest Christian Library of that
age, that namely which Origen and Pamphilus had collected. It is no
exaggeration to say from this single collection of manuscripts at Caesurae
derives the larger part of the surviving ante-Nicene literature. In his
Library, Eusebius must have habitually handled codices of the gospels older
by two hundred years than the earliest of the great uncials that we have now
in our libraries. F.C. Conybeare, in the Hibbert Journal, October 1902.
Considering the honesty, ability and opportunity of Eusebius as a witness
to the “New Testament” text, let us now move on to the his evidence
concerning Matthew 28.
The Evidence of Eusebius
According to Ludwig Knupfer, the editor of the Christadelphian
Monatshefte, Eusebius, among his many other writings compiled a file of
corrupted variations of the Holy Scriptures, and:
…the most serious of all the falsifications denounced by him, is without
doubt the traditional reading of Matthew 28:19.
His source material has been lost, as he later wrote:
…through events of war I have lost all of my files and other materials
connected with the magazine.
But various authorities mention a work entitled Discrepancies in the
Gospels, and another work entitled The Concluding Sections of the Gospels.
According to Conybeare:
Eusebius cites this text (Matt. 28:19) again and again in works written
between 300 and 336, namely in his long commentaries on the Psalms, on
Isaiah, his Demonstratio Evangelica, his Theophany ...in his famous history
of the Church, and in his panegyric of the emperor Constantine. I have,
after a moderate search in these works of Eusebius, found eighteen citations
of Matthew 28:19, and always in the following form: ‘Go ye and make
disciples of all the nations in My name, teaching them to observe all
things, whatsoever I commanded you.’
Ploughman’s research uncovered all of these quotations except for one,
which is in a catena published by Mai in a German magazine, the Zeitschrift
fur die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft, edited by Dr. Erwin Preuschen in
Darmstadt in 1901. Eusebius was not content merely to cite the verse in this
form, but he more than once commented on it in such a way as to show how
much he confirmed the wording “in my name”. Thus, in his Demonstratio
Evangelica he wrote the following:
For he did not enjoin them “to make disciples of all the nations” simply
and without qualification, but with the essential addition “in his name”.
For so great was the virtue attaching to his appellation that the Apostle
says, "God bestowed on him the name above every name, that in the name of
Jesus every knee shall bow of things in heaven and on earth and under the
earth." It was right therefore that he should emphasize the virtue of the
power residing in his name but hidden from the many, and therefore say to
his Apostles, "Go ye, and make disciples of all the nations in my name.’
(col. 240, p. 136)
Conybeare proceeded, in Hibbert Journal, 1902:
It is evident that this was the text found by Eusebius in the very
ancient codices collected fifty to a hundred and fifty years before his
birth by his great predecessors. Of any other form of text he had never
heard and knew nothing until he had visited Constantinople and attended the
Council of Nice. Then in two controversial works written in his extreme old
age, and entitled, the one ‘Against Marcellus of Ancyra,’ and the other
‘About the Theology of the Church,’ he used the common reading. One other
writing of his also contains it, namely a letter written after the Council
of Nice was over, to his seer of Caesurae.
In his Textual Criticism of the New Testament Conybeare wrote:
It is clear therefore, that of the manuscripts which Eusebius inherited
from his predecessor, Pamphilus, at Caesurae in Palestine, some at least
preserved the original reading, in which there was no mention either of
baptism or of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. It has been conjectured by Dr.
David-son, Dr. Martineau, by the Dean of Westminster, and by Prof. Harnack
(to mention but a few names of the many) that here the received text could
not contain the very words of Jesus - this long before anyone except Dr.
Burgon, who kept the discovery to himself, had noticed the Eusebian form of
the reading.
Naturally an objection was raised by Dr. Chase, Bishop of Ely, who argued
that Eusebius indeed found the traditional text in his manuscripts, but
substituted the briefer wording in his works for fear of vulgarizing the
“sacred” Trinitarian wording. Interestingly, a modern Bishop revived the
very argument used 150 years earlier, in support of the forged text of 1
John 5:7-8:
For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and
the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear
witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three
agree in one.
According to Porson (in a preface to his Letters):
Bengel...allowed that the words (The Three Witnesses) were in no genuine
manuscripts...Surely then, the verse is spurious! No! This learned man finds
a way of escape. ‘The passage was of so sublime and mysterious a nature that
the secret discipline of the Church withdrew it from the public books, till
it was gradually lost.’ Under what a lack of evidence must a critic labor
who resorts to such an argument!?
Conybeare continued, refuting the argument of the Bishop of Ely:
It is sufficient answer to point out that Eusebius’ argument, when he
cites the text, involves the text ‘in my name.’ For, he asks, ‘in whose
name?’ and answers that it was the name spoken of by Paul in his Epistle to
the Philippians 2:10.
Finally, the Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics states:
The facts are, in summary, that Eusebius quotes Matthew 28:19 twenty-one
times, either omitting everything between ‘nations’ and ‘teaching,’ or in
the form ‘make disciples of all the nations in my name,’ the latter form
being the more frequent.
Having considered the evidence of Eusebius, let us also consider some
other early writers.
Other Early Writings
The anonymous author of De Rebaptismate in the third century so
understood them, and dwells at length on ‘the power of the name of Jesus
invoked upon a man by Baptism’. (The Author of De Rebaptismate, from Smith’s
Dictionary of the Bible, Vol. I, page 352.)
In Origen’s works, as preserved in the Greek, the first part of the verse
is cited three times, but his citation always stops short at the words ‘the
nations’; and that in itself suggests that his text has been censored, and
the words which followed, ‘in my name’, struck out. – Conybeare
In the pages of Clement of Alexandria a text somewhat similar to Matthew
28:19 is once cited, but from a Gnostic heretic named Theodotus, and not as
from the canonical text, but as follows: ‘And to the Apostles he gives the
command: Going around preach ye and baptize those who believe in the name of
the Father and Son and Holy Spirit.’" - Excerta cap. 76, ed. Sylb. page 287,
quote from Conybeare.
Justin [Martyr]...quotes a saying of Christ...as a proof of the necessity
or regeneration, but falls back upon the use of Isaiah and apostolic
tradition to justify the practice of baptism and the use of the triune
formula. This certainly suggests that Justin did not know the traditional
text of Matthew 28:19. - Enc. of Religion and Ethics
In Justin Martyr, who wrote between A.D. 130 and 140, there is a passage
which has been regarded as a citation or echo of Matthew 28:19 by various
scholars, e.g. Resch in his Ausser canonische Parallelstellen, who sees in
it an abridgement of the ordinary text. The passage is in Justin’s dialogue
with Trypho 39, p. 258: ‘God hath not afflicted nor inflicts the judgment,
as knowing of some that still even today are being made disciples in the
name of his Christ, and are abandoning the path of error, who also do
receive gifts each as they be worthy, being illuminated by the name of this
Christ.’ "The objection hitherto to these words being recognized as a
citation our of text was that they ignored the formula ‘baptizing them in
the name of the Father and Son and Holy Spirit.’ But the discovery of the
Eusebian form of text removes the difficulty: and Justin is seen to have had
the same text as early as the year 140, which Eusebius regularly found in
his manuscripts from 300 to 340. - Conybeare (Hibbert Journal)
We may infer that the text was not quite fixed when Tertullian was
writing, early in the third century. In the middle of that century Cyprian
could insist on the use of the triple formula as essential in the baptism
even of the orthodox. The pope Stephen answered him that the baptisms even
of the heretics were valid, if the name of Jesus alone was invoked. (This
decision did not prevent the popes of the seventh century from
excommunicating the entire Celtic Church for its remaining faithful to the
old use of invoking in Jesus name). In the last half of the fourth century,
the text ‘in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost’
was used as a battle cry by the orthodox against the adherents of
Macedonius, who were called ‘pneumato-machi’ or ‘fighters against the Holy
Spirit’, because they declined to include the Spirit in a Trinity of persons
as co-equal, consubstantial and co-eternal with the Father and Son. They
also stoutly denied that any text in the New Testament authorized such a
coordination of the Spirit with the Father and Son. Whence we infer that
their texts agreed with that of Eusebius. - Conybeare (Hibbert Journal)
Exceptions are found which perhaps point to an old practice dying out.
Cyprian (Ep. 73) and the ‘Apostolic Canons’ (no. 50) combat the shorter
formula, thereby attesting to its use in certain quarters. The ordinance of
the Apostolic Canon therefore runs: ‘If any bishop or presbyter fulfill not
three baptisms of one initiation, but one baptism which is given (as) into
the death of the Lord, let him be deposed.’ "This was the formula of the
followers of Eunomius (Socr. 5:24), ‘for they baptized not into the Trinity,
but into the death of Christ.’ They accordingly used single immersion only.
- Encyclopedia Biblia (Article on “Baptism”)
There is one other witness whose testimony we must consider. He is
Aphraates...who wrote between 337 and 345. He cites our text in a formal
manner, as follows: ‘Make disciples of all the nations, and they shall
believe in me’. The last words appear to be a gloss on the Eusebian reading
‘in my name’. But in any case, they preclude the textus receptus with its
injunction to baptize in the triune name. Were the writing of Aphraates an
isolated fact, we might regard it as a loose citation, but in the presence
of the Eusebian and Justinian texts this is impossible. – Conybeare
How the Manuscripts Were Changed
The following quotations demonstrate how freely the scribes altered the
manuscripts of the “New Testament”, in stark contrast to the scribes of the
“Old Testament” scriptures who copied the holy writings with reverence and
strict accuracy.
These quotations also show the early heretical beginning of Trine
immersion at a time when the doctrine of the Trinity was being formulated,
and how the “New Testament” writings were changed to conform to the
syncretized practice.
In the case just examined (Matt. 28:19), it is to be noticed that not a
single manuscript or ancient version has preserved to us the true reading.
But that is not surprising, for as Dr. C.R. Gregory, one of the greatest of
our textual critics, reminds us: ‘The Greek Manuscripts of the text of the
New Testament were often altered by scribes, who put into them the readings
which were familiar to them, and which they held to be the right readings.’
(Canon and Text of the N.T. 1907, pg. 424). “These facts speak for
themselves. Our Greek texts, not only of the Gospels, but of the Epistles as
well, have been revised and interpolated by orthodox copyists. We can trace
their perversions of the text in a few cases, with the aid of patristic
citations and ancient versions. But there must remain many passages which
have been so corrected, but where we cannot today expose the fraud. It was
necessary to emphasize this point, because Dr. Wescott and Hort used to aver
that there is no evidence of merely doctrinal changed having been made in
the text of the New Testament. This is just the opposite of the truth, and
such distinguished scholars as Alfred Loisy, J. Wellhausen, Eberhard Nestle,
Adolf Harnack, to mention only four names, do not scruple to recognize the
fact.” While this is perfectly true, nevertheless, “there are a number of
reasons why we can feel confident about the general reliability of our
translations.” - Peter Watkins, in an excellent article ‘Bridging the Gap’
in The Christadelphian, January, 1962, pp. 4-8.
Codex B. (Vaticanus) would be the best of all existing manuscripts...if
it were completely preserved, less damaged, (less) corrected, more easily
legible, and not altered by a later hand in more than two thousand places.
Eusebius therefore, is not without ground for accusing the adherents of
Athanasius and of the newly arisen doctrine of the Trinity of falsifying the
Bible more than once. - Fraternal Visitor 1924, page 148, translation from
Christadelphian Monatshefte.
We certainly know of a greater number of interpolations and corruptions
brought into the Scriptures...by the Athanasians, and relating to the
Doctrine of the Trinity, than in any other case whatsoever. While we have
not, that I know of, any such interpolation or corruption, made in any one
of them by either the Eusebians or Arians. Whiston - in Second Letter to the
Bishop of London, 1719, p. 15.
While trine immersion was thus an all but universal practice, Eunomius
(circa 360) appears to have been the first to introduce (again) simple
immersion ‘unto the death of Christ.’ This practice was condemned on pain of
degradation, by the Canon Apostolic 46 (al 50). But it comes before us again
about a century later in Spain; but then, curiously enough, we find it
regarded as a badge of orthodoxy in opposition to the practice of the
Arians. These last kept to the use of trine immersion, but in such a way as
to set forth their own doctrine of a gradation in the three Persons. Smith’s
Dictionary of Christian Antiquities (Article on Baptism)
In the ‘Two Ways’ of the Didache, the principal duties of the candidates
for baptism and the method of administering it by triple immersion or
infusion on the head are outlined. This triple immersion is also attested to
by Tertullian (Adverses Prax 26)...The most elaborate form of the rite in
modern Western usage is in the Roman Catholic Church. Oxford Dictionary of
the Christian Church - pp. 125-126
The threefold immersion is unquestionably very ancient in the
Church...Its object, of course, to honor the three Persons of the Holy
Trinity in whose name it is conferred. Catholic Encyclopedia - page 262
If it be thought, as many critics think, that no manuscript represents
more than comparatively late recensions of the text, it is necessary to set
against the mass of manuscript evidence the influence of baptismal practice.
It seems easier to believe that the traditional text was brought about by
this influence working on the ‘Eusebian’ text, than that the latter arose
out of the former in spite of it. Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics -
Article on “Baptism”
The exclusive survival (of the traditional text of Matt. 28:19) in all
manuscripts, both Greek and Latin, need not cause surprise...But in any
case, the conversion of Eusebius to the longer text after the council of
Nice indicates that it was at that time being introduced as a Shibboleth of
orthodoxy into all codices...The question of the inclusion of the Holy
Spirit on equal terms in the Trinity had been threshed out, and a text so
invaluable to the dominant party could not but make its way into every
codex, irrespective of its textual affinities. Conybeare - In the Hibbert
Journal
Athanasius...met Flavian, the author of the Doxology, which has since
been universal in Christendom: ‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
etc.’ This was composed in opposition to the Arian Doxology: ‘Glory to the
Father, by the Son, in the Holy Spirit’. Robert Roberts, in “Good Company”
(Vol. iii, page 49)
Whiston, in Second Letter Concerning the Primitive Doxologies, 1719, page
17, wrote:
The Eusebians...sometimes named the very time when, the place where, and
the person by whom they (the forms of doxology) were first introduced...Thus
Philoflorgius, a writer of that very age, assures us in ‘Photius’ Extracts’
that in A.D. 348 or thereabouts, Flavianus, Patriarch of Antioch, got a
multitude of monks together, and did there first use this public doxology,
‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit’.
And regarding the alteration of scripture based on liturgical use,
Hammond, in “Textual Criticism Applied to the N.T.” (1890) page 23 wrote:
There are two or three insertions in the New Testament which have been
supposed to have their origin in ecclesiastical usage. The words in
question, being familiarly known in a particular connection, were perhaps
noted in the margin of some copy, and thence became incorporated by the next
transcriber; or a transcriber’s own familiarity with the words may have led
to his inserting them. This is the source to which Dr. Tregelles assigns the
insertion of the doxology at the close of the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6,
which is lacking in most of the best authorities. Perhaps also Acts 8:37,
containing the baptismal profession of faith, which is entirely lacking in
the best authorities, found its way into the Latin text in this manner.
Considering the evidence of the manuscripts, the versions and now the
early writings, you should by now have come to conclusion that in the early
centuries some copies of Matthew did not contain the modern Triune wording.
Regardless of the opinions or positions taken by our commentators, we must
at the very least admit that fact.
In legal practice where copies of an original lost document vary, the
“Internal Evidence” is used to resolve the discrepancy. That is, a
comparison of the undisputed text with text in question, in order to
determine which of the variant wordings is more likely to be the original.
With both variants in mind, we will now turn to the scriptures themselves
for our internal evidence.
Internal Evidence
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." (1 Thessalonians 5:21)
In this verse, the Greek word translated as “prove” is dokimazo, and it
means, “to test, examine, prove, scrutinize (to see whether a thing is
genuine or not), to recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, deem
worthy.”
In our efforts to determine which reading of Matthew 28:19 is original,
we will submit both renderings to ten “tests”. In doing so, we will be able
to recognize the genuine, and expose the spurious.
1. The Test of Context
When examining the context, we find that today’s Trinitarian wording
lacks logical syntax, that is, the true understanding of the verse is
obscured by a failure of the varying concepts to harmonize. If however, we
read as follows, the whole context fits together and the progression of the
instructions is comprehensible:
All power is given unto me...go therefore...make disciples in my name,
teaching them...whatsoever I have commanded ...I am with you... (Matthew
28:18-20)
2. The Test of Frequency
Is the phrase “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit” used elsewhere in the scripture? Not once.
Did Jesus use the phrase “in my name” on other occasions? Yes, 17 times
to be exact, examples are found in Matt. 18:20; Mark 9:37,39 and 41; Mark
16:17; John 14:14 and 26; John 15:16 and 16:23.
3. The Test of Doctrine
Is any doctrine or concept of scripture based on an understanding of a
threefold name, or of baptism in the threefold name? None whatsoever. Is any
statement in scripture based on the fact of baptism in the name of Jesus?
Yes! This is clarified in 1 Corinthians 1:13: “Is Christ divided? Was Paul
crucified for you? Or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?” These words,
when carefully analyzed, suggest that believers should to be baptized in the
name of the One who was crucified for them. The Father, in His unfathomable
love, gave us His only Son to die in our stead, He being later raised to
incorruptibility by the Spirit of God. But it is the Lord Jesus Himself who
was crucified, and therefore in His name believers must be baptized in
water.
According to Dr. Thomas, in Revealed Mystery Article XLIV:
There is but one way for a believer of ‘the things concerning the Kingdom
of God, and the name of Jesus Christ’ to put Him on, or to be invested with
His name, and that is, by immersion into His name. Baptism is for this
specific purpose." "As for it’s significance, baptism is linked inseparably
with the death of Christ. It is the means of the believer’s identification
with the Lord’s death. - God’s Way, pg. 190. The Father did not die, nor the
Holy Spirit. As the scripture says, “buried with Him (Jesus) in baptism,”
not with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Romans 6:3-5)
R. Roberts used this explanation in “The Nature of Baptism”, page 13):
According to trine immersion, it is not sufficient to be baptized into
the Son. Thus Christ is displaced from His position as the connecting link,
the door of entrance, the ‘new and living way.’ And thus there are three
names under heaven whereby we must be saved, in opposition to the apostolic
declaration, that ‘there is none other name (than the name of Jesus Christ
of Nazareth) under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.’ (Acts
4:12).
This, of course, is the same reasoning offered by Paul. Were ye baptized
in the name of Paul? Or in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, or
in any other name that replaces Christ from His position as the sacrificial
Lamb and the only name given to us for salvation?
Based on the above understanding alone, we can ascertain the genuine text
of Matthew 28:19 confirming the use of the phrase, “in my name.”
4. The Test of Analogy
Does any other scripture make reference to baptism in the Triune name?
No. Does any other scripture reference baptism in the name of Jesus? Yes!
The Father baptized the disciples with the gift of the Holy Spirit, a
promise that came according to Jesus “in His name.” (John 14:26) This is
because Jesus is the “common denominator” [Literally: Name] in both water
baptism and baptism of the Holy Spirit, as made apparent by the following
scriptures:
John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that
I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but
if I depart, I will send him unto you.
John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father
will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to
your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (See also John 7:39).
Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning
the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both
men and women.
Notice that they were baptized as a result of the preaching of the name
of Jesus Christ, not the titles “Father, Son and Holy Ghost.” By analogy, we
should therefore be baptized in Jesus’ name, because the invoking of His
Name is the catalyst of understanding that prepares us for the baptism of
the Spirit, which is also given in His name. (Acts 2:38-39, 19:1-5, John
3:3-5)
5. The Test of Consequence
When we are baptized, do we “put on” the name of the Father, Son and Holy
Ghost? No. Do we put on the name of Jesus? Yes. When we are baptized in the
name of Jesus Christ, according to all baptismal accounts recorded in
scripture, we are quite literally being baptized “into” the name of Jesus
Christ.
Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have
put on Christ.
No mention is made in scripture of any baptism being related to the
titles of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Every actual account mentions a clear
connection with the person of Christ, and His atoning sacrifice.
6. The Test of Practice
Did the disciples, as they were implementing the “Great Commission” ever
once baptize into the Trinity? Never! Did they baptize in the name of Jesus?
Always! (Acts 2:38; 8:16; 10:48 (inferred); 19:5, etc.) The argument has
been made when defending Triune immersion; “I would rather obey Jesus, than
to imitate the Apostles.” This kind of reasoning though, places the Apostles
in rebellion, and makes all Apostolic baptisms contrary to the word of God.
If all of God’s Word was inspired, and it was, then we should not try to pit
one verse against another, but rather seek to reconcile all of God’s Word in
proper context, and rightly apply it to our lives. It is easier to believe
that the disciples followed the final instructions of Christ, than to
believe that they immediately disobeyed His command.
7. The Test of Significance
What significance is mentioned in scripture for baptizing believers in
the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost? None. What significance is
conveyed toward being baptized in the name of Jesus? First, scripture
teaches that baptism in the name of Jesus is an act of repentance leading to
the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). Second, baptism in His name alone is
associated with the promise of God’s Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38, 19:1-5). Third,
baptism in the name of Jesus is compared to our personal willingness to be
living sacrifices or even die with Christ. (Romans 6:1-4 and Colossians
2:12). Fourth, being baptized into Christ is how we ‘put on’ Christ
(Galatians 3:27). Fifth, baptism in His name is called the “circumcision of
Christ,” and reflects our “putting off” of the man of sin, therefore
becoming a “new creature in Christ Jesus.” (Colossians 2:11-12, 2
Corinthians 5:17). Baptism in the name of Jesus expresses faith in the
physical life of Jesus, the crucifixion of the Son of God for our sins, and
the remission of sins through His name. Trinitarian baptism can only express
faith in Catholic theology itself.
8. The Test of Parallel Accounts
Matthew 28 is not the sole record in the gospels of the “Great
Commission” of the Church. Luke also recorded this event in great detail. In
Luke 24:46-47, he wrote of Jesus speaking in the third person: “And that
repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all
nations.” This passage alone, in contradiction to the falsified text,
establishes the correct wording of Matthew 28:19, where Jesus spoke in the
first person, “in my name.” Further, the Gospel of Mark also records another
version of the “Great Commission,” using some of the same patterns of
speech: “Go ye...all the world...preach the gospel...every creature
...baptized...in my name...” (Mark 16:15-18) Of course, it is not baptism
that “in my name” refers to here, but rather the works that the disciples
would do. Yet compared to Matthew, the similarity is striking, for neither
is baptism explicitly mentioned there, but that disciples should be made,
“in my name.”
9. The Test of Complimentary Citation
While there is no text that offers a complimentary citation of
Trinitarian baptism, there is a striking resemblance between the actual
wording of Matthew 28:18-20 and Romans 1:4-5. Matthew contains the
Commission of Christ to His Apostles, while the Romans account is Paul’s
acceptance of his own commission as an apostle. Consider the following
similarities:
Matthew 28:18-20........................................Romans 1:4-5
“all power is given unto Me”........................“the Son of God with
power”
“Go ye” .......................................................
“received...apostleship”
“teaching them to observe”...........................“for obedience to
the faith”
“all nations”..................................................“all
nations”
“in My name”................................................“for His
name”
10. The Test of Principle
It is written: "whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of
the Lord Jesus...” (Colossians 3:17). In this principle laid down by Paul,
the implication is clear. The word “whatsoever” would of certain necessity
include baptism, which is a command involving both word and deed. The
traditional wording of Matthew, containing the Trinitarian wording, is
clearly not in accordance with the above principle. The shorter wording,
without the falsified insertion, follows this principle. This establishes
which of the two wordings is the contradictory one. God’s Word does not
contradict itself; rather it compliments and completes itself. Paul not only
expressed this principle, but he applied it specifically to the topic of
baptism. In Acts 19:1-6 there is an account concerning the disciples of John
who had been baptized under his ministry. Like baptism in Jesus’ name,
John’s baptism was one of repentance for the remission of sins (Mark 1:4,
Acts 2:38). John message, which accompanied his baptism, was that One would
come after him, who would “take away the sins of the world” and “baptize
with the Holy Spirit.” Paul introduced these disciples to that One, and
applied the above principle re-baptized them. “When they heard this, they
were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands
upon them, the Holy Spirit came upon them…” And so, applying the test of
principle to our two readings in Matthew 28:19, we find very strong support
for the phrase “in My name.”
Other Sources
Sufficient evidence has been produced to enable the reader to decide
whether or not the Trinitarian wording in Matthew 28:19 is genuine. The
following quotations are presented by way of interest, and are not used in
the arena of textual criticism thus far employed.
The cumulative evidence of these three lines of criticism (Textual
Criticism, Literary Criticism and Historical Criticism) is thus distinctly
against the view that Matt. 28:19 (in the traditional form) represents the
exact words of Christ. - Hastings Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics,
Article: Baptism: Early Christian.
The command to baptize into the threefold name is a late doctrinal
expansion. Instead of the words baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost’ we should probably read simply, ‘into
my name’. Dr. Peake - Bible Commentary, page 723
There is the “triune” baptismal formula, which may prove a very broken
reed when thoroughly investigated, but...we leave it for separate treatment.
The thoughtful may well ponder, meantime, why one cannot find one single
instance, in Acts or Epistles, of the words ever being used at any of the
main baptisms recorded, notwithstanding Christ’s (seemingly) explicit
command at the end of Matthew’s Gospel. F. Whiteley in The Testimony (Oct.
1959, pg. 351. “Back to Babylon”)
The command to baptize in Matt. 28:19 is thought to show the influence of
a developed doctrine of God verging on Trinitarianism. Early baptism was in
the name of Christ. The association of this Trinitarian conception with
baptism suggests that baptism itself was felt to be an experience with a
Trinitarian reference. Williams R.R. - Theological Workbook of the Bible,
page 29
Doubtless the more comprehensive form in which baptism is now everywhere
administered in the threefold name...soon superseded the simpler form of
that in the name of the Lord Jesus only. Dean Stanley - “Christian
Institutions”
The striking contrast and the illogical internal incoherence of the
passage...lead to a presumption of an intentional corruption in the
interests of the Trinity. In ancient Christian times a tendency of certain
parties to corrupt the text of the New Testament was certainly often
imputed. This increases our doubt almost to a decisive certainty concerning
the genuineness of the passage. E.K. in the Fraternal Visitor - Article:
“The Question of the Trinity and Matt. 28:19.” 1924, pg. 147-151, from
Christadelphian Monatshefte.
In his Literal Translation of the Bible, Dr. Robert Young placed the
Trinitarian “names” of Matthew 28:19 in parentheses, thus indicating the
words to be of doubtful authenticity.
The very account which tells us that at last, after His resurrection, He
commissioned His disciples to go and baptize among all nations, betrays
itself by speaking in the Trinitarian language of the next century, and
compels us to see in it the ecclesiastical editor, and not the evangelist,
much less the Founder Himself.
The Trinitarian formula (Matt. 28:19) was a late addition by some
reverent Christian mind. James Martineau - Black’s Bible Dictionary, article
“Seat of Authority”,
The obvious explanation of the silence of the New Testament on the triune
name, and the use of another formula in Acts and Paul, is that this other
formula was the earlier, and that the triune formula is a later addition.
Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics
Professor Harnack dismissed the text almost contemptuously as being “no
word of the Lord’.” Professor Harnack – History of Dogma (German Edition)
Clerical conscience much troubled (see Comp. Bible App. 185) that the
apostles and epistles never once employ the triune name of Matt. 28:19. Even
Trinitarians, knowing the idea of the Trinity was being resisted by the
Church in the fourth century, admits (e.g. Peake) ‘the command to baptize
with the threefold name is a late doctrinal expansion’, but still prior to
our oldest yet known manuscripts (Fourth Century). It’s sole counterpart, 1
John 5:7 is a proven interpolation. Eusebius (A.D. 264-340) denounces the
triune form as spurious, Matthew’s actual writing having been baptizing them
‘in my name’. F. Whiteley in The Testimony footnotes to Article: Baptism,
1958.
Should we correct the text of Matthew 28:19? We could not find a more
serious divinely appointed symbolism in the entire Bible. The symbolic value
of baptism in Matthew 28:19 could not be of less concern to God than that of
the Ark of the Covenant was in ancient Israel. Uzzah died when he touched
it, and few would conclude that his motives were anything but commendable!
Every symbolic action required by God is associated with actual cause and
effect. Consider the following cause-and-effect examples. When Joshua
pointed his spear there was victory (Joshua 8:18) Only three victories were
given to Joash when he struck the ground only three times (2 Kings 13:19-25)
The Passover Lamb had to be without blemish (even as was Christ), if a
household was to be protected from the Death Angel (Exodus 12:5). None of
God’s rituals are without true meaning and consequences. When God speaks, it
is done! Christ called Lazarus, and Lazarus arose! In matters of ritual,
such as Baptism and the Passover, we are dealing with God’s rituals, not
man’s.
All man-made rituals, no matter how well intentioned, when they deviate
from the Word of God, are nothing more than unprofitable traditions that
“making the Word of God of no effect” (Mark 7:13). Obedience to God’s
commands, however, will always “cause” a desirable “effect”.
In the matter of establishing the original text of Matthew 28:19, it is
indeed important to determine what is genuine, and what is spurious, in
order to properly obey God's command. After all, that is the essence of our
introductory text from Deuteronomy 4:2, “You shall not add...nor take
from...that you may keep the commandments.” When we are obedient to the true
command of our Lord, we can expect an eternal effect.
Believers were taught to anoint the sick “with oil in the name of the
Lord.” (James 5:14) The result would be “that you may be healed”. When two
or three gather together “in His name”, the result is that He is there in
the midst of them. As our evidence reveals, Jesus commanded us to go and
make disciples “in His name”. As a result, He would be with them “always,
even to the end of the age.” Anything we do “in His name” directly involves
Him. It is no wonder that Paul so clearly charged those believers in
Colosse: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him!”
Addendum
1. The Light is Dawning
In 1960, The British and Foreign Bible Society published a Greek
Testament, and the alternative rendering for Matthew 28:19 was phrased “en
to onomati mou” (“in my name”). Eusebius was cited as the authority.
The Jerusalem Bible, of 1966, a Roman Catholic production, has this
footnote for Matthew 28:19:
It may be that this formula...is a reflection of the liturgical usage
established later in the primitive community. It will be remembered that
Acts speaks of baptizing in the name of Jesus.
2. But Matthew 28:19 and Luke 24:47 Say Nothing of Baptism!
This is true. They refer only of “making disciples of all nations” and
“repentance and remission of sins.” However, once we have established that
the original text of Matthew 28:19 simply says “in my name,” we have
essentially eliminated all support for baptizing “in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost!” Because of this far reaching
implication, we were forced to examine the internal evidence regarding
baptism, in order to find any other possible support for the traditional
reading, because the Trinitarian doctrinal concept that was added to Matthew
28:19 is connected with baptism. Though baptism is not specifically
mentioned in Matthew 28:19 or Luke 24:47, it is inferred by the following
two points:
1. In Matthew, the command is to “make disciples in my name.” To “make a
disciple” of necessity includes baptism in the conversion process (Mark
16:15-16, John 3:3-5), and the entire process is under the umbrella of the
specification to do so “in His name.”
2. In Luke, “repentance and remission of sins” would be preached “in His
name.” By the testimony of other scriptures (Luke 3:3, Acts 2:38), it is
clear that remission of sins comes through baptism, preceded by repentance.
Both of these are to be preached “in His name.”
3. The Evidence of Eusebius
Jerome was born A.D. 331 and died in 420. He wrote many exegetical and
controversial treatises and letters, as well as the renowned Latin Vulgate
translation of the Scriptures.) He made an interesting statement which is is
as follows (from the Catalogue of Ecclesiastical Writers):
Matthew, who is also Levi...composed a gospel...in the Hebrew language
and characters...Furthermore, the Hebrew itself is preserved to this day in
the library at Caesurae which the martyr Pamphilus so diligently collected.
Now Eusebius of Caesurae (260-340 A.D.) inherited from that Pamphilus
(who died in A.D. 310) that famous Library, a library that was commenced by
Origen (185-254 A.D.). The wording of that statement by Jerome apparently
meant that the original Manuscript of Matthew was still to be seen in the
Library at Caesurae. It could have meant that an early copy of Matthew’s
Hebrew writing was there, but the phraseology of Jerome appeared to indicate
that it was the actual Manuscript written by Matthew himself.
4. The Mental Reservations of Eusebius
On page 14, of the above reference, mention is made of the fact that
after the Council of Nicaea Eusebius three times used the triune name-phrase
in writing. The following three extracts shed light on this strange affair:
1. At the Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325) Eusebius took a leading part...He
occupied the first seat to the emperor’s right, and delivered the opening
address to Constantine when he took his seat in the council
chamber...Eusebius himself has left us an account of his doings with regard
to the main object of the council in a letter of explanation to his church
at Caesurae...This letter...is written to the Caesareans to explain that he
would resist to the last any vital change in the traditional creed of his
church, but had subscribed to these alterations, when assured of their
innocence, to avoid appearing contentious. Dictionary of Christian Biography
and Literature; Eusebius
2. Our concern here is only with Nicaea as it affected Eusebius...his own
account of the matter is transmitted to us...in the letter he addressed to
his diocese an explanation of his actions at the Council, for with some
misgiving he had signed the document bearing the revised text of the creed
he had presented...But being satisfied that the creed did not imply the
opposite Sabellian pitfall ...he signed the document. Wallace Hadrill, in
‘Eusebius of Caesurae,’ (1960)
3. The Nicene Council followed, in the summer of A.D. 325. Eusebius, of
course, attended and was profoundly impressed by the sight of that majestic
gathering...He occupied a distinguished position in the Council; he was its
spokesman in welcoming the Emperor...On the next day, as if yielding to
those representations, and moved by the express opinion of Constantine, he
signed the Creed, and even accepted the anathematism appended to it; but did
so, as we gather from his own statement, by dint of evasive glosses which he
certainly could not have announced at that time. While then he verbally
capitulated in the doctrinal decisions of the Nicene Council...he did so
reluctantly, under pressure, and in senses of his own...He knew that he
would be thought to have compromised his convictions, and therefore wrote
his account of the transaction to the people of his diocese, and, as
Athanasius expresses it ‘excluded himself in his own way’. William Bright in
his Preface to Burton’s ‘Text of Eusebius Ecclesiastical History’
5. Second Century Mutilations of the Sacred Text
In the book, mention is made of the fact that textual critics have been
able to reproduce the Sacred Text substantially correct as it existed in the
second or third century. As was pointed out on page 7, “there is every
reason to believe that the grossest errors that have ever deformed the text
had entered in already in the second century...If our touchstone only
reveals to us texts that are ancient, we cannot hope to obtain for our
result anything but an ancient text. What we wish however, is not merely an
ancient, but the true text.” The following three excerpts are interesting
and illustrate that pronouncement:
1. The Introduction contains the following: "It may be accepted with
confidence that we have at command the New Testament substantially as the
writings contained in it would be read within a century of their
composition. The Authentic New Testament was translated by Dr. Hugh J.
Schonfield, published in 1962.
It is in that century, as has been pointed out, that the “very grossest
textual errors” deformed the Sacred Text.
2. The S.P.E.C. commenting on Matthew 28:19 stated:
One would expect this name to be that of Jesus and it is surprising to
find the text continuing with ‘the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost,’
which are no names at all. The suspicion that this is not what Matthew
originally wrote naturally arises. In ‘Father, Son and Holy Ghost’ we have
the Trinitarian formula...which was associated with Christian Baptism in the
second century, as evidenced in the Didache, chapter seven. The S.P.C.K.
published in 1964, Volume One, of the Clarified New Testament.
3. F.C. Kenyon, in The Text of the Greek Bible, pages 241-242 said:
At the first each book had its single original text, which it is now the
object of criticism to recover, but in the first two centuries this original
Greek text disappeared under a mass of variants, created by errors, by
conscious alterations, and by attempts to remedy the uncertainties thus
created."
6. The Source of the Error
The earliest reference to the Trinitarian doctrinal insertion is found in
the Didache. The Didache is a collection of fragments of writings from five
or more documents. They were originally written, it is thought, between A.D.
80 and 160. Although we now have only 99 verses, those verses contain the
seeds of many false teachings that developed into the Papal Superstitions.
The seeds of Indulgences, the Mass, the Confessional, the substitution of
sprinkling for immersion and other gross errors are to be found in that
disreputable pseudo-Christian document. (Refs: IV1, IX2-4, X2-6, XIII3, XIV1
and IV6.)
In the Didache, among all the above mentioned apostate beliefs, is found
the Trinitarian phrase that later wormed its way into the text of Matthew
28:19, displacing the authentic words of Christ. Here, then, is the source
of the erroneous written teaching reflecting the practice of apostate
“Christians” in the second century.
7. Should you be Re-Baptized?
After restoring the text of Matthew 28:19 to its original form, i.e., “Go
ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations in my name,” the
following question naturally arises: “I was baptized in the name of the
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Since this is not Biblical, should I be
re-baptized?” Rather than answer according to our own wisdom or bias, let us
find the answer to this important question in the Word of God itself, for
that alone is the true standard against which to measure our experience with
the Lord. Turning to Acts we find the answer.
Acts19:1-6 And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul,
having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some
disciples he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you
believed?" So they said to him, “We have not so much as heard whether there
is a Holy Spirit.” And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?”
So they said, “Into John's baptism.” Then Paul said, “John indeed baptized
with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe
on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.” When they heard
this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had
laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with
tongues and prophesied.
By reading the above narrative, it is easy to discover the answer to our
question. Paul found disciples, who like most of us today, had heard the
message of the Kingdom of God, and had responded to that message by being
baptized following our repentance. However, in this situation, these
"disciples" had yet to hear the full gospel message, namely that Jesus, in
His death, burial and resurrection had purchased salvation for all mankind
by becoming the very Lamb of God that John had preached about. Because of
this, their baptism, under the ministry and authority of John (who preceded
Christ) did not reflect an association with the death and burial of Jesus
that made baptism in His name effective.
While we responded to the complete gospel message, they affirmed their
belief by a baptism that only associated them with a doctrinal creed, rather
than the atoning blood of Jesus that is only appropriated through His name.
For Paul, the next step was obvious. Knowing that the promise of the Holy
Spirit was given to those who through the obedience of faith had repented of
their sins, and been baptized in the name of Jesus, he instructed them to be
re-baptized:
Acts 4:12…for there is no other name under heaven, given among men by
which we must be saved.
Was Paul mistaken? Or have we been? Certainly Paul was not, for according
to God’s promise, He laid hands on the people and they received the Holy
Spirit only moments after being baptized in His name. Remember, baptism in
the name of Jesus expresses faith in the Incarnation, the authentic human
life of Jesus, the death of the Son of God on the stake for our sins, and
the remission of sins through His name. In summary, using the name of Jesus
in the baptismal formula expresses faith in:
1. The Person of Christ (who He really is);
2. The Work of Christ (His death, burial and resurrection for us); and
3. The Power and Authority of Christ (His ability to save us by Himself).
For these very reasons, baptism was then, and should continue now to be
administered in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. His Word, not the
tradition and fabrications of men, should be the standard which we teach,
believe and obey. As the opening scripture so aptly admonishes us:
Deuteronomy 4:2 You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor
take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which
I command you.
It is extremely disconcerting to me that this glaringly problematic
“scriptural” assertion has been blindly accepted for centuries. On the day
that I was baptized by a WCG minister back in 1973, I had serious
reservations about the procedure as I watched those being baptized ahead of
me, among a sizeable group of people, into the Trinity. I had not been able
to confirm my suspicions about this scripture at that time, but I was
bothered by this contradictory practice for 28 years before taking the
appropriate action. I am indebted to Ploughman, now deceased, for his
scholarly effort. He made a life long study of Matthew 28:19! He was quite
passionate about exposing the fraud of early scribes. Were you baptized into
apostasy?
